Say a prayer for the youth of America (Scott Beaulier)

Youth unemployment rates are too
high. According to official statistics, 23.3 percent of people seeking work in
the age 16-19 grouping are unable to find jobs. 20 to 24 year-olds also face
major challenges, as we can see in their 13.3 percent rate of unemployment. Male
unemployment is higher than female (25.8 vs. 20.9 percent for ages 16-19; 15.1 versus 11.3 percent for ages 20-24), and black unemployment rates are incomprehensible (35.3
percent for black men ages 16-19; 30.6 percent for black men ages 20-24).

Economists presented with these
data would attribute the high youth unemployment figures to a number of causes:
minimum wages hit unskilled young workers particularly hard; the Great
Recession has thrown many with little experience and skills out of work first;
the rise in welfare benefits have caused many to ask the quite rational
question, "Why work?" All of the above explanations are persuasive and point to the economic incentives at work in causing young
adults not to be gainfully employed.

Today's USA Today has a story that brings a cultural explanation front and center: Many of
today's youth are not doing themselves any favors when pursuing jobs, and
almost all could benefit from a few lessons and self-help books that address
themes of etiquette, good manners, and proper business communication. According to the article:

Human resource professionals say they've seen recent college grads text or take calls in interviews, dress inappropriately, use slang or overly casual language and exhibit other oddball behavior.

...

'Life has gotten more casual,' Swan says. 'They don't realize (the interview) is a sales event.'

So much off-the-cuff speaking in tweets and text messages has left many young people with stunted social skills, says Jonathan Singel, director of talent acquisition for Avery Dennison, a packaging and label maker.

As someone who interacts with
Millennials day-in, day out on a face-to-face and e-mail basis, I can speak
from personal experience about the deterioration in basic business manners and
etiquette. I get requests to write letters of recommendation that have a
subject line of "Hey" and grade inquiries like the following, "Yo prof, Whad I
get on the exam Thx!"

The erosion in basic people
skills in our youth extends beyond written communication. Students spend many of
their classes text messaging, and they are more comfortable approaching
professors with complaints about their grades than ever before. When they run
into a barrier or a professor not willing to budge, parents are often brought
in to advocate for their kids.

And, here's the bad news: What's happening in high schools and colleges around
the country with Millenials is happening to a far worse extent in their peer
group of young adults who are not in school and unable to get a job! Lacking
basic manners, and lacking the buffer from the working world that college
provides, many of our youth are stuck unemployed and at risk of staying unemployed
for a long, long time. Sadly, their sustained unemployment early in adulthood is a near-insurmountable barrier for the remainder of life and correlates with higher rates of substance abuse, alcoholism, crime, and many other social problems.

Scott Beaulier is Chair of the Economics and Finance Division and
Director of the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy at Troy
University. Email Scott at sbeaulier@troy.edu.